Malerisch
by Morgone
Summary: Who knew a complete stranger could be so picturesque. Malerisch means picturesque in German. Rated T for some swearing. If you put this story under a microscope, you can see the GaaMatsu. AU
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! I know this isn't a new chapter for** **Secrets of Room 315** **, and I'm sorry! I'm kinda slow, but I'm working on the next chapter! School just kinda took first priority, you probably understand. So, I got this idea, and personally I LOVE GaaMatsu, it's one of my OTP's, but I haven't written a oneshot about them mainly because I didn't know how to go about it. So this isn't as romantic as I want it to be, but I suck at writing that kind of stuff. So, here we go!**

It was pure. The stretched canvas of white was propped up in front of him, the pure, untouched world staring back at him.

He hated it. Why couldn't something just come to his mind, just so _something_ – _anything_ at this point – could be painted onto it, just so the white canvas wouldn't be so…so _white_. White was boring; nobody wants a white canvas on display in a museum, or in their house. They want something beautiful, something that will be cherished and revered forever.

He went to the best school for the arts just so he could have a chance to become as idolized as Da Vinci or Picasso. He knew the best way to control how thick you wanted a line to be, knew how to plan without paper and pencil. Hell, he even knew how to get inspiration without actually being inspired.

So why was none of that coming to mind now? He had to have a picture done by tomorrow for a class project, he was running out of time! He can't just sit here!

Groaning, he rubbed his scalp, unintentionally spiking up his red hair. He'd be more productive sleeping than this, he thought angrily. Feeling his phone vibrate, he checked the caller ID. Sending a silent prayer to God, he answered.

"What is it Naruto?" He asked. Maybe his friend could help him out. The blond always had the ability to help him when he was stuck in situations like this. He

"What'cha doin' Gaara?" Gaara winced silently as his friends loud voice hit his ear.

"Sitting here doing nothing. " Well, he was technically doing something, but hey – technicalities.

"You're stuck, aren't you? Go take a walk! There's a park near the college, right? Take your stuff and go there! The fresh air will help, trust me! And you need to tan; you're looking as pale as a ghost!" Gaara snorted.

"Yeah, sure. You seem to keep forgetting that it is physically impossible for me to tan, Naruto. Does Sophomore year ring any bells?" During their spring break sophomore year, Naruto, Gaara, and their group of friends went down south to the beach, to swim and have fun as a makeshift family. Naruto ended up tying Gaara to a beach chair after the latter said that he couldn't tan, and would only burn. That evening resulted with Naruto and Gaara in agony, for different reasons.

"Oh, hehe, that. Yeah, I remember. But still, get outside! You may get inspired by looking at flowers, or cloud-watching!"

"Don't mention cloud-watching." He couldn't think of his sister's husband. That would bring bad thoughts, evil thoughts that Temari would castrate him for if she ever found out about them.

"Sorry. Well, I've gotta go! Hinata's waiting for me! Good luck!" The dail tone met his ears, and Gaara sighed. Whether he liked it or not, Naruto was right. The blond may be an idiot when it comes to school, but he was great at helping others. So, following his friend's advice, he packed his easel, paints, and canvas; setting off to the park.

 **X**

 **Random line breaker because I don't know how to use the page break in fanfiction**

 **X**

Going outside so far hasn't helped much. His canvas was still blank, but his stomach was full. He had forgotten about lunch. Looking around the park, nothing really seemed to spark any inspiration within his creative mind.

This whole thing was really starting to piss him off. He turned around, trying to find something, or someone. At this point, he take the chance of appearing to be a stalker. Anything to get his damn painting done! Gaara was about to give up, when a person caught his eye.

Lying down on the grass, about 15 feet away, he estimated, was a young women. She had her eyes closed, but her tan skin complimented her light brown hair, the strands following the light breeze blowing through the park. He knew it was weird – a bit concerning actually – that he was looking at her so intensely, but he couldn't get her out of his head.

He had never seen a moment as picturesque as this moment was. Is this what true inspiration feels like? He felt like he could paint a million pictures of her. He hoped that she wouldn't wake up soon; he needed to paint the basics of her body first. Maybe when she wakes up he'll have the courage to talk to her. Maybe, if they get along, he'll get to paint her again.

Smiling slightly, he dipped his brush, and began to paint.

 **Alright! So that's done! Now, I know Gaara is OOC, VERY OOC, but this idea just popped into my head, and I just needed to write it out before it went away. In my head, it seemed kinda cute, Gaara going head over heels for Matsuri.**

 **ChibiOnigiriChild**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello! So, I got another idea for this story. It's set a few years after the first chapter, so Gaara and Matsuri have become closer. Not sure how close, seeing as I'm terrified of writing romance, but I guess I'll leave it open ended so you can decide on what you like.**

The soft clanging of dishes being washed was hardly heard as the paintbrush was carefully drawn down the canvas, a thin dark blue trail in its place. The paintbrush was lifted off, and soon connected the line to some dark blue hills, to another line. Gaara surveyed his work. So far, all was good.

He had been commissioned to paint a picture of a businessman's youngest daughter, an adorable 6 year old with blonde – almost white – hair, and sparkling blue eyes that made almost anyone melt. In the picture he was asked to reference, she was wearing a blue dress with short flowing sleeves, a light purple sash around her waist and an airy skirt that dropped to her calves. She was an adorable girl, he agreed.

The picture was almost done. However, there was something that made it despicable in his eyes. Now, it had been a few years since he graduated art school, and a few years since he ever painted a person, but that was no excuse.

He had put too much yellow into her hair, and it looked like he threw a glob of paint on it. It made the painting look abysmal. How the hell could he fix it? The worse thing was that the hair was the _only_ problem. The dress was great, the background was amazing – he really prided himself on that, it was abstract, and for the life of him he _could not paint abstractly_ – but it was hair. The hair. The stupid hair.

Why is he freaking out over a paintings hair?

"Hey Gaara. How's the painting going?" Gaara turned his head. His friend, Matsuri was standing behind him, looking over his shoulder.

"It's awful. I hate it. I need to start over."

"I don't know what you're talking about. The painting looks great!" While he appreciated the sentiment, it didn't help him at all. Unlike him, Matsuri couldn't paint to save her life. Actually, she couldn't do anything remotely artistic. That's why she was always over at his apartment: she liked watching him paint because she couldn't. The one time she tried…

"What's so great about it?" Matsuri paused, then tilted her head and stared at the painting for a while. Even though he asked for her opinion, he wished he could take it back. He really didn't like people scrutinizing his art, it made him feel…insecure. He inwardly shivered at the fact that he could feel such a thing.

"Well, the dress is really pretty, and the background looks really nice, especially since abstract is as hard for you as art is for me in general. And the hair…" She stared at the hair for a few seconds, then burst out laughing, earning a scowl from him. "You're upset about the hair?!" She exclaimed, after controlling her loud laughter to loud giggling. "Why? It looks fine!" Gaara felt his face getting hot; dammit he was blushing!

"You know that it's fixable, right?" He stared at her incredulously. Fixable? How is an eyesore like that _fixable_?

"No, it's not, Matsuri. I'm the artist here, not you." He replied irately. She ignored him, and walked toward him.

"Stop being so close-minded. Seriously, if you keep doing that, you're going to fall. Don't artists have to be open-minded? Look," She instructed, taking the end of a clean brush and pointing it at the painting. "The yellow isn't dry yet, so you can take some of the extra and even out the ends. And if you look at the picture, her hair goes down to her waist, so you've made the hair too short. All you have to do is take the excess yellow, and lengthen the hair as well as add some depth to it. See? Fixable." She stated proudly, placing the brush back into the cup with a flourish. He took another look at it. Maybe he could remove it, besides, it looks like he went a little thin in the middle…

"Gaara, just because I can't draw or paint, doesn't mean that I don't understand the theory that goes along with it. Don't underestimate me, got it?" She stated the last part indignantly, although they both knew that she was joking.

"Yeah, yeah," He brushed the light stab off dryly, "now leave me alone. I need to fix this, and with how much noise you make I might make it worse."

 **So, I didn't know exactly how to end this, so I thought that this was a good stopping point. So, here you go! Second chapter of Malerisch!**

 **Hatake Kaisa actually inspired me to write this in a way. I read her review, then I started daydreaming…then this happened. So, I know it's a bit shorter than the first chapter, but I hope this will sate you for now.**

 **And if you have any ideas for this story, or another random oneshot that you want me to write with this universe, don't be afraid to put it into a review, and I'll do my best to incorporate it.**

 **I may try my hand at writing GaaMatsu…but with kids. MAYBE I seem to do better at writing romance when the couple already has established a relationship. The reason for that is because I haven't dated anyone, therefore don't know how the hell any of that stuff works.**

 **ChibiOnigiriChild**


	3. Chapter 3

**Once again, another time skip! I'm sorry, but I don't know how to continue this without making it full of time skips…because I suck at continuity. Anyway, this takes place a few months after chapter 2, because why not.**

The sound of rain pounding onto the roof was what woke him up from his fitful sleep. The fact that he was sleeping with other people in the room didn't help. So he stared out the window, watching the rain fall.

This became routine for him. While as good an artist as he was, he wasn't very well known. Usually unknown artists are unable to make a living on their artistic talent. Gaara was one of those many people.

He lost his apartment a couple months ago, and began sleeping at the local homeless shelters ever since. He still was an artist, however due to his lack of money he could only complete black and white sketches. Every day he would go to the library, and check his eBay account **(1)** , where he would place the drawings up for sale. Despite the fact that he cringed whenever he looked at his art – he preferred painting to sketching, but he really didn't have a choice in the matter, did he – it sold relatively well, and it was enough to keep his phone going. As long as he had his cell phone, everything would be fine.

After all, he didn't exactly tell Temari and Kankuro about his living situation…

But even if he did, Matsuri would find out first. And she would kill him for not telling her. However, her living conditions weren't the best either. But she had an apartment as well, shared with her roommate, Tenten. He and Tenten got along relatively well, but he wasn't going to be rude and impose himself on them. Tenten and Matsuri were waitresses at Sasha's Bakery, which was a rather popular bakery with the locals. They were paid a whole lot more than minimum wage, however money was considered tight between the two of them. He would only be dead weight.

And so began this long, tiring, battle against something he couldn't win against.

Seeing as he had nothing to do, he took out his sketchbook – which was running out of paper, he should have enough money saved up to buy a new one by now – and began to sketch. It was going to be a simple picture, a young girl standing out in the rain, umbrella over her head and hand out to feel the water falling out of the sky.

When he finished drawing, he inspected the picture. Laughing silently, he marveled at how Matsuri and the girl looked similar.

He knew that he had a small crush on her – who wouldn't – she was nice to everyone, and was rather pretty. Not to mention that many of his drawings that had sold for high prices were inspired by her.

Okay, maybe he had a bit of an obsession with her as well. But that's beside the point. The drawing was done. Maybe he could finish one more before his inspiration ran out…

Something began moving between his legs, and he nearly shrieked, only to realize that the movement was coming from his phone. He forgot that he put it in the front pocket of his oversized jacket. Okay, bad place for it then **(2)**. He checked the caller ID and winced.

Matsuri was calling. Matsuri was calling at…3am, if the clock on his phone was accurate. Something bad was about to happen. He could feel it.

Getting out of the bed, he quickly – and quietly, some of these people are light sleepers – he got outside of the room, and rushed to the exit, standing in front of it before answering the phone.

"Matsuri, what is it?"

"Gaara. Where are you?" Where am I? What does she mean by – oh shit. She found out, didn't she?

"Gaara. Answer me. Where. Are. You?" Her voice was dangerous, dammit, why did he have to lie and say that his apartment was being renovated, dammit dammit dammit dammit –

"In my apartment. Matsuri, it's 3 in the morning." He was surprised, and a little smug at how calm his voice was, however the smugness was blown away when he heard an intake of breath over the phone.

"Oh really? So the old man who answered the door this morning was you? Do you really expect me to believe that?" Her voice was accusing, and did he detect hurt? Well, he did lie to her after all…

"No, no I don't."

"So let me repeat the question. Where are you?"

"I'm at a homeless shelter. You know; the one between Helmsford and State?" He knew that she knew which one he was talking about; he and Matsuri volunteered here for a couple years to help the shelter with the influx of people for Christmas.

"Stay there. I'm coming." Did she say what he thinks she just said? Coming over? Hell no.

"No you're not."

"Yes. I am." Her voice was adamant, and he sighed over the phone. Shy did she have to be so damn stubborn?

"Matsuri. You're staying where you are. Even if you picked me up, where the hell would I go?" He didn't have enough money to afford an apartment; he'd just end up here again!

"I've got it covered, don't worry. You'll stay here – and yes, Tenten is fine with it, we'll be sharing my room – and Sasha's looking for a baker, since our other one quit, so there's a job for you. You're good at baking, and Sasha doesn't require any formal training **(3)**. You'll be fine, trust me." She sounded so confident, it was nauseating.

"Matsuri, listen to me. You and Tenten are financially tight, you can't possibly afford to house another person, regardless of me getting a job or not!"

"And you're not listening to me when I said that you'll be fine." She shot back. Her overconfidence was getting on his nerves.

"Why the hell are you doing all of this?" The words slipped out of his mouth without even thinking. Matsuri didn't respond, an awkward silence reigned over their phone call. He shouldn't have said that, his current situation was no excuse. He shouldn't have been that rude to her. He opened his mouth to apologize, when, almost silently, an exasperated breath was caught by the mic, and Matsuri finally replied, a fond undertone to her voice.

"Just stay there, idiot. I'm coming to get you. Don't you dare move."

 **(1)- For the sake of this story, eBay is going to exist. I was going to put Etsy down, but I can't imagine Gaara using an Etsy. I think it's just the way the name sounds XD**

 **(2)- My friend put her phone between her legs once and her mom called her. It began to vibrate and she freaked out. Sorry, had to put this in there. Gaara's having a bad time, let's have him slip up once in a while.**

 **(3)- Now, I don't know if any formal training is required other than being at least 18, but for this story, there is none.**

 **So that's chapter 3! Wow, two chapters in one day! Hope this one isn't too bad; it's about two and a half pages on Word, which, considering the fact that I have trouble writing for more than one page before losing inspiration is pretty good.**

 **This chapter I dedicate to Hatake Kaisa, because most of this chapter was her ideas. A part two is definitely coming, because this idea is really good, and I like the way it's going.**

 **ChibiOnigiriChild**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi! I'm back! So, I wrote this chapter with the intent on giving the story a little more body to it, however this chapter isn't as well written as I would've liked. But this gives a bit more flesh to the story, and right now I like the way it's going.**

 **So, next week is Midterm week for me, so I probably won't update at all next week. I also posted a new story,** **Random GaaMatsu Drabbles** **, which where plot bunnies and tiny ideas that I get will go. This story is basically a collection of one-shots, and I'll indicate whether a chapter is a continuation of another.**

 **Anyway, one with the chapter!**

The wall was the wrong color. Every other wall matched, _except_ that one. The walls were covered in beautiful wood paneling, the dark, rich brown making the café feel homey. But that one wall…it was a _lighter_ brown. While most people, customer or worker, didn't care or couldn't tell, he did. That wall _irritated_ him. It ruined the pristine, picturesque look that he loved so much.

It had been a few months since Matsuri and Tenten forced him to live with them, and a few months since he became an employee at this café. While he didn't like the job of pastry chef, he liked the atmosphere and the coworkers the building came with, so he saw no reason to leave. His employer was a stout woman named Sasha, whose cheery personality and heartwarming smile gave everyone a reason to like her. All of her employees – Gaara included – were close with her, as she worked alongside them in the kitchen, rather than an office.

Suddenly, something hard smacked him in the back of the head, snapping him out of his thoughts as his face hit the counter with a loud thud. Looking behind him, he saw Tenten smiling cheekily, a plastic serving tray in her hand.

"Glaring at the wall isn't going to make it change, Gaara." She said in a singsong voice, skipping away while laughing. He glared at her back, even though what she said was true it still annoyed him.

The one thing he really didn't like about Tenten was that she had no sense when it came to art. Unlike Matsuri – who can tell what colors go and what don't – Tenten always wore whatever she liked, which wasn't a bad thing, that is, unless the colors didn't match. Gaara knew full well that she was doing it to irritate him.

It didn't help that since he was working, he no longer had the time to actually paint or do anything remotely artistic. So his temper was shorter than it usually was. Which was why he needed to fix that damn wall. Either that, or take a day off to paint or sketch a picture. Gaara suddenly remembered that Sasha mentioned a couple weeks ago that she wanted to change the decor that hung on the café walls. Maybe he could paint something…

"…Gaara? Hey, Gaara! Snap out of it! Hello!" A hand was waving itself in front of his face, and Gaara realized that he had spaced out. Again. This time however, Matsuri was the one who was talking to him.

"Are you okay? You've been spacing out a lot."

"I'm fine." He replied, shaking his head. "I just wanted to know if Sasha still wants to change the décor." Matsuri tilted her head slightly in thought, before nodding.

"Actually, she was just asking for you about that. She wants you to paint something." Matsuri suddenly leaned her face close to his, her eyes narrowed as she scrutinized him. He had never noticed that the uniform she was required to wear had a deep v neck that exposed more of her cleavage than he liked. Wait, why was he looking down there anyway?

"You sure you're okay? Do you feel sick?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry. Where's Sasha?" He needed to get away from her before he did something incredibly stupid.

"She's in the backroom, taking inventory, I think." Nodding his thanks, he quickly walked away, finding Sasha as soon as he entered the storage room. She saw him and smiled like a mother would to her son. He never knew why she looked at him like that, but he never questioned it.

"Gaara! I was looking for you!"

"So I heard."

"You wouldn't mind painting a picture for the café, would you? Tenten told me that you were pretty good." Of course Tenten told her. She seemed to like bragging that she had an official art student living with her, even though the title of art student had no prestige to it whatsoever.

"Do you have any conditions I should follow?"

"Just one. Could the theme be Baking?" He raised an eyebrow? Baking? She noticed his confusion, and quickly began to explain.

"What I mean is that I would like the picture to have things related to baking in it." Right, this is a café. Having a painting about baking hanging in a café would make sense. Gaara nodded. It would be an excuse to paint. He needed the stress reliever. Sasha's smile grew, and she suddenly hugged him.

"Thank you! When do you think you'll be done?" Gaara paused. Usually it took him a couple weeks for him to even _decide_ on what colors to use, but since he hadn't painted in a while he would most likely spend all of his free time working on it.

"Give me a week or two." Releasing him from the hug, she smiled at him one more time before shooing him away to actually do his job.

2linebreaklinebreaklinebreak2

"Wow." Was all Sasha said as she looked at his painting. Personally, he was proud of it. He had painted a woman in the middle of baking a multilayer cake, bending over to grab a cooked cake in the oven, with a counter in front of her. Separate layers of the cake were carefully placed; two were completely frosted and sitting on a cake display stand. He had one layer in the center of the counter, partially frosted. And in the back he had another on a cooling rack. There was a lot going on in the picture, more than he usually liked, but what made this painting special was how he went about in making it.

It was the first picture he had painted truly on his own, with nothing but inspiration and the supplies. He had originally painted the woman with the idea of basing it off Sasha herself; however his subconscious made it so that she looked more like Matsuri. This was also the only painting he had ever done with only multiple shades of one color. He made it the same color as the mismatched wall, so it could match something.

Sasha also seemed to notice the similarity between the woman and Matsuri, because she kept flicking her eyes between the two. He winced. Was his crush that obvious? He hoped not.

"So?" He supplied, taking her awed expression as approval.

"This is…wow. I've never seen a painting like this before. I really like it." She smiled at him, her eyes twinkling. "Don't worry; I'll keep your source of inspiration a secret." Gaara felt his face grow hot, a rare blush appearing on his face. Sasha laughed at his embarrassment, ruffling his hair.

"I think your crush on her is adorable." She walked away to hang his art up, leaving him where he was sitting. He sighed tiredly. Maybe Matsuri won't notice the blatant similarities.

He _really_ hoped she wouldn't.

 **Okay! So that's chapter 4 done! I really like the painting I described in this chapter, it's probably one of my best ideas yet.**

 **Sorry about the lack of Matsuri in this chapter, but I felt that Gaara needed to be fleshed out a bit more, regardless of the fact that he's VERY OOC, and that his character is probably inconsistent with what I've written in previous chapters.**

 **But I like the way the story is going, so I hope I won't lose inspiration any time soon.**

 **ChibiOnigiriChild**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello! You're all gonna kill me, I know. But I actually got my act together, and now I'm a rising senior! So I tried to make this a really long chapter for you all for being patient! This isn't so much of GaaMatsu as it is kind of plot development. At this point in the story Matsuri and Gaara have started "dating". I tried to write more buildup but it seemed pretty bad every time I tried, so this takes place about 9 or so months after chapter 4. And yes, Gaara still works at the bakery.**

 **Also, for the purpose of this story, Naruto is almost a year younger than Gaara, instead of a couple months older (at least that's what I think the age difference is in the anime. I don't know). Anyway, thank you, and hopefully enjoy!**

He was going to kill Naruto. The idiot just celebrated his 26th birthday, and said idiot decided to go to a bar with Kiba and get drunk. That pissed him off. The man was a Father and a husband! He lost his opportunity to go off and get drunk like this! And who had to clean the mess up? Him, of course. Ever since Naruto turned 21, Gaara had been put on speed dial, so whenever this happened Naruto wouldn't have to worry about remembering Gaara's number. Earlier that evening, he and Matsuri were working the evening shift at Sasha's, when he got the call. He could hardly understand him over the loud noise blasting into his ear, and Naruto's drunken rambles.

So now here he was, helping a stumbling Naruto into Matsuri's tiny car, while she had her hand over her mouth trying not to burst into laughter.

"I've never seen him so drunk before." Matsuri remarked, laughter seeping through her voice.

"I've seen him worse than this. "He replied stiffly, cringing at the feeling of Naruto's drool all over his shoulder. "This is normal for him."

"Normal?" she repeated, looking at the drooling man in horror. Gaara followed her gaze, and seeing as his friend had trouble sitting up, slid into the back seat.

"If he falls over, we'll never be able to get him up." He explained. Contrary to popular belief, Naruto was as tired as sober Shikamaru when drunk. Once he's horizontal, he's out with no chance of waking up until his hangover's gone. None of his friends had any idea how or why that always happened; it just did and they learned not to question it. Currently, Naruto was babbling, and it was getting on Gaara's nerves.

"Can flying squirrels really fly? I don't they can fly do you think they can fly Gaara? They're probably animals from the future who use invisible jetpacks to fly. Invisible jetpacks sound cool don't they Gaara? I want an invisible jetpack that way I could freak Sasuke out I want to see his reaction to me flying with an invisible jetpack will you help me make an invisible jetpack-"

"Do you want me to turn the radio on?" She offered, attempting to be helpful. Gaara froze.

"NO. Don't."

"Why not? Won't it drown him out?"

"He'll start…singing. I don't think my ears can handle the amount of noise that leaves his mouth." Gaara replied stubbornly. Matsuri snorted, not believing him. That was it. He was going to go deaf, all because she wouldn't believe him. When they stopped at a red light, she rummaged through a bunch of cd's she had, and randomly pulled one out. Putting in the player, she hit play. A very familiar song started playing.

"Oh god." Gaara whispered in despair. "Why would you put this song on?" All of a sudden, Naruto sat ramrod straight. Then, the noise that was Naruto's singing voice came into existence.

"HEY HEY YOU YOU I DON'T LIKE YOUR GIRLFRIEND! NO WAY NO WAY I THINK YOU NEED –" The song abruptly shut off, but Naruto was still rolling. " HEY HEY YOU YOU I COULD BE YOUR GIRLFRIEND! HEY HEY YOU YOU I KNOW THAT YOU LIKE ME NO WAY NO –" Gaara looked around Matsuri for something to shut his friend up, anything. Suddenly, a flash of brown caught his attention; a book. Without thinking, he grabbed it and whacked Naruto in the head with it. "HEY HEY YOU YOU I WANT TO BE –"WHACK! The blond fell where he sat, the book held above his head. There was silence – precious, precious silence – for a few minutes.

"…So…I shouldn't do that again?" Matsuri spoke in a small voice, trying to keep her eyes on the road. Gaara look out the window. They were almost as Naruto's house, if he remembered correctly.

"Yes. Never do that again." He replied shortly. "Turn at the housing track entrance coming up on your left." Matsuri did as she was told, and whistled lowly at the sight of the houses.

"Damn. These things are small, but they sure look expensive. I wonder how much they are."

"Out of your price range."

"Shut up, let me dream. And weren't you the one who roomed with Tenten and I until a couple months ago?" Matsuri teased.

"At least I have my own place now."

"Ow, the jibes are starting to hurt. Now, where is his house? I've never been here before, so I'm relying on your memory here." He didn't comment on the change of subject.

"Take the second right turn and go down the road. He lives in the middle of the cul-de-sac. There are 7 houses on it, so he's the literal middle. You' recognize his house because Hinata has her gnome with the lantern in her flower garden." Matsuri hummed in response, and focused on her surroundings. She knew what Naruto's house looked like; she had been there as his friend for Naruto and Hinata's oldest's baby shower, and his first two birthdays. She had been his date for Bolt's third birthday a few months back.

They were dating…kind of. Matsuri had gotten into a bad relationship with this guy named Kubo, and broke up with him almost a year ago. They had only dated for a few months, but he had quickly gotten super possessive of her, yelling at her for working the same shift as him at the bakery, yelling at her for pretty much anything involving other guys. She broke up with him as soon as he told her to choose her male friends over him. However, breaking up with him had caused Matsuri to gain a stalker; she was terrified to get into another relationship, fearing that Kubo would attack her significant other. So, in a way, they were dating; but they weren't at the same time. Matsuri called what they were doing a test run. Gaara understood that; she wanted to see if they were compatible before things got too intimate. He would've done the same thing. Besides, Kubo still lurked around her sometimes, and it really freaked her out. She managed to get a restraining order a couple weeks ago; however neither Matsuri nor Gaara knew that something like that would stop him.

"Found iiiiiit." She quietly sang triumphantly.

"Congratulations. You found a house." He deadpanned. Matsuri huffed in annoyance, turning toward him and playfully swatting at him.

"Oh hush. Now Mr. Smartass can help me get his drunk friend to the front door." She replied, getting out of the car.

"Oh, so he's my friend when he's a burden?" Gaara asked, closing the door quietly, and walking over to the other side, getting an unconscious Naruto out. Meanwhile, Matsuri rang the doorbell and was waiting patiently when Hinata opened the door. By that point, Gaara had made it halfway across the path with her husband.

"Guess who decided to get impossibly drunk?" Matsuri introduced brightly. Hinata looked at him and sighed.

"Thank you. Please, come in." She moved aside, allowing Matsuri and co. through the door and into the house.

"Should I lay him on the bed, or leave him here?"

"Leave him on the recliner. It'll be impossible to get him into bed, and easier to explain if Bolt wakes up. Do you guys want anything to drink?" Hinata asked, gesturing to the reclining chair near the window, which Gaara roughly laid Naruto on, a loud snore his only response.

"Coffee please. Two, I know Gaara's gonna want one." Matsuri replied. Hinata nodded, walking into the kitchen, Matsuri then looked at how Naruto was positioned on the recliner. He was laid across it, legs and head dangling from the arms.

"Did you really have to throw him on it?"

"How else was I supposed to do it? Naruto's heavy." Was her only reply as Gaara sat on the couch, sighing in annoyance. Matsuri got up, and with difficulty, managed to rearrange Naruto so that his head was on the back of the seat.

"Do you think Sasha'll kill us for closing up early?" He asked.

"I don't think so. She's got her hands full with her first kid, so that's probably the last thing on her mind at the moment. What time is it anyway?" Matsuri said, looking at the family pictures on the wall. Glancing at the clock made him groan.

"It's one." Matsuri whipped around.

"One?! Aw man, I actually wanted to get some sleep tonight too." She whined, sitting next to him with another groan. "We seem to be groaning a lot tonight, huh?" She said moodily. Gaara nodded in agreement.

"Yes, we are." The noise of clinking mugs diverted their attention, as Hinata came in with two mugs full of steaming coffee.

"I'll come back with cream and sugar in a minute." She said. Leaving the room, Matsuri grabbed hers only to hiss in pain as she yanked her hand away.

"Ow! Damn, that's hot!" Gaara smirked at his…girlfriend? Yeah, we'll call her that. She technically is.

"Well, it's hot coffee. That was just brewed. Of course the mug would be hot." He said, standing up.

"Wait, what are you doing?" she asked, the pain momentarily forgotten.

"Getting you ice for your hand." He walked over to the kitchen, ignoring her weak resistance, and walked over to the fridge, startling Hinata, who had been making tea for herself.

"Gaara! Is everything alright?" She asked. He nodded.

"Matsuri just burned herself. She forgot the coffee was hot."

"Oh, alright. I'll be out in a minute." She replied as he got what he needed and left, grabbing a washcloth to put around the icepack. Matsuri was where he left her, sitting on the couch, watching Naruto sleep.

"Don't you think watching him's creepy?" He asked her. Matsuri shook herself, seeming to be in thought rather than blatantly staring before answering him.

"Sorry, I was thinking." She said, thanking him for the ice before placing it on her hand, hissing at the initial pain from the ice.

"Thinking about what?"

"About…where this is going. Our…relationship." She spoke slowly, as if he'd freak out; which he wouldn't. He hated talking about it just as much as she did. Talking about their relationship always caused both of them to second guess, and he hated second guessing himself. Gaara prided himself on the fact that he could pick his own battles; the fact that he would even have second thoughts drove him crazy. He weighed his choices before becoming Matsuri's boyfriend; he didn't want the doubt clouding his judgement.

"If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to talk later. When we're somewhere more private." She said, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. He nodded, and seeing his approval, lightened her tone. "Can I touch my mug now? Or is it still too hot?" He quickly tested the temperature with his finger, the heat almost burning his finger.

"Wait a few more minutes." Hinata entered the room, a small tray holding cream, sugar, her cup of tea, and some scones. She set the tray down on the coffee table in front of her guests before sitting in the rocking chair on the other side.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." She apologized, Matsuri giggling.

"Don't apologize; waiting would actually do me some good. Are those chocolate chip?" She asked, eyeing the scones on the table.

"They are. It's my way of saying thank you for bringing Naruto home. I was getting worried; he's usually always home by 11 when he goes out. "

"When he called me, he seemed pretty drunk. I figured Matsuri and I picking him up would be better instead of him risking it by taking a cab. He's gotten his address wrong before." Gaara said, picking up his coffee mug and indicating that it was safe to pick up.

"I know he's gotten his address wrong before, but he hasn't gotten that drunk in a few years. That's worrying. I wonder if something happened at work. I mean, Sasuke's working in the same department now, isn't he?" Matsuri asked Hinata, finishing her first scone and grabbing a second one.

"Yes, he has. While Shikamaru is with them to ensure that there's no fighting, Naruto's telling me that Sasuke still tries to make his job harder." Hinata replied, looking at her sleeping husband with a worried look on her face.

"Sasuke's an ass. He's always been an ass. That's not going to change. Even if he's married to Sakura, I refuse to tolerate him. He did everything but torture Naruto when they were in school, and I refuse to let him continue." Gaara stated. Sasuke had always bullied Naruto under the pretense of friends, but even Naruto knew that that wasn't the case. To this day Gaara never knew why Naruto and Sasuke kept the other around.

"C'mon, don't be so harsh. Sakura's helped Sasuke a bit, hasn't she?" Matsuri said.

"Okay, so she helped him realize that he shouldn't talk down to people and that he needed to take the stick out of his ass. So far, that's all she's done."

"May I remind you how you told me you acted in high school?" Matsuri shot back, and Gaara sighed in defeat. He was just as bad as Sasuke, but at least he admitted that he was an ass. That put him above Sasuke.

"Is it really two already?" Matsuri asked in awe. Looking at the clock, Gaara did read that the time was 1:56 in the morning. This was the latest he stayed awake in a while. His insomnia started to fade away a year ago, and now he was almost on a regular sleep pattern. He hoped that this didn't screw it up.

"We should probably leave. No doubt that you're tired, Hinata." Gaara said, standing up. "Where do you want the dishes?"

"Oh, no, don't worry about the dishes; I'll take care of those. You two should go home and rest as soon as you can." Hinata waved as Matsuri stood up and followed Gaara, both saying their goodbyes before going over to Matsuri's car.

"Give me your keys. I'm driving."

"What?"

"Matsuri. You're tired. I can see it. You're walking slower, consciously putting pressure on your foot before stepping. You do that when you're tired. Let me drive." Gaara coaxed Matsuri into giving him her keys. Soon they were back on the road, Matsuri trying to stay awake.

"You're sleeping at my house. You won't be able to drive home, and my car's in the shop so I won't have a ride back. Besides," He paused, watching Matsuri's head bobbing up and down from the corner of his eye, "my house's closer." They were only about 10 minutes away from his house rather than the 25 to hers, so he figured staying over at his place would be the best for both of them. About 10 minutes later, he saw the sign of the apartment complex where he lived. Pulling into the driveway, he sighed in relief when he parked under the carport, thankful that he lived on the second floor. He didn't think that he could make it up any stairs. He shook Matsuri, her groaning signifying her lack of alertness.

"Matsuri. Wake up. We're here, Can you walk?" He asked. He didn't receive an answer, and instead helped Matsuri over to his apartment, where he directed her to his bed. He could sleep on the couch just fine; there was blankets underneath the couch he could use, and the couch was a futon. So it was fine. After setting Matsuri on the bed and giving her one of his shirts to wear (He wasn't going to make his girlfriend sleep in her work outfit. There was no time to wash and dry it before their shift started at noon), he grabbed sweatpants and an old shirt before laying on the futon. He fell asleep as soon as his head hit the cushion.

 **So, there you go. 6 pages. It's the most that I've sat down and written all at once. Is Gaara more out of character than he was before? I can't tell. Mainly because I haven't written him in so long. Anyway, so I hope you like this chapter. Hopefully I'll update soon with Chapter 6.**

 **Later~**


	6. Chapter 6

Shit, his back hurt. What the hell did he do to it last night?

That was the first thought that came to Gaara's mind as he sat up only to fall back down onto the futon, his lower back screeching in pain. Grabbing around in the dark finally procured his phone, and he flicked it on to see what time it was. 4:30am, great. Usually he'd sleep through this, but Gaara didn't remember taking his sleep meds last night – well, a couple hours ago. Forcing himself to stand up, he hobbled slowly over to the kitchen where he kept his painkillers.

"Why the fuck did I sleep on the damned futon?" He growled. He really should've known better than to do that. Sleeping without proper back support only resulted in more visits to the doctor, and he _really_ couldn't afford that right now. Hell, he could hardly afford this simple apartments rent, food, and his meds. He could always sell the paintings he has but deemed too embarrassing to sell. Regardless, first thing to do is change. Looking down, he grimaced as he noticed he was still wearing his work uniform, white flour stains adorning his shirt. Great, at least today was his day off.

Leaving the kitchen was harder than it should've been, his back still screaming in protest with every movement he made. Swallowing hurt, walking hurt, breathing hurt, _everything hurt_. After what seemed like hours, he made it to his room and opened the door, and froze. There was a lump in his bed, a human shaped lump. The breath caught in his throat. He didn't do anything stupid did he? Oh god, who was that under there? He flicked on the light switch, only to be blinded by the fluorescent lighting in the room. Which also had the lump reveal its identity as…Matsuri? When did she get here?

"Gaara? What's going on?" Her voice was sleepy, and despite his best efforts he couldn't help but blush lightly at her confusion. Why the hell did she have to be adorable? It wasn't fair; it really wasn't.

"I believe I had you sleep here due to us arriving only a few hours ago." He replied, slowly walking over to his dresser only to hiss as his knee buckled, nerves singing in agony. He heard frantic footsteps as he was gently pulled up.

"What's wrong? Here, sit on the bed. What did you need?" She fretted, helping him over and eased him into a sitting position. If he wasn't in so much freaking pain he would've been stiff. Her hands were warm and gentle as she placed her hand on his forehead. "Hm, you don't have a fever. Can I get you anything?"

"There's – There's some sleep meds in my kitchen. Can you grab the bottle for me with water please?" Shuffling footsteps alerted him to her movement, and he winced once he was sure she was out of earshot. He hated showing weakness, especially when it pertains to her. As far as she knew, his worst hardship was being homeless and unable to pursuit his passion. Not having to pay for meds that kept him relatively pain-free. Not having to watch how often he was on his feet if he wanted to walk the next day. Not to hide his gigantic crush on her that was slowly getting harder and harder to suppress. A gigantic crush. Could he even call it that? No, no he couldn't. Not anymore.

"Gaara? I have the sleep meds." Matsuri's voice echoed in the hall, coming in with a white bottle and a glass of water. She opened the bottle and placed two pills along with the water glass on the nightstand. "You had some pain meds on the counter, so I put those away for you. What did you need them for? If it's okay for me to ask about something like that!" Matsuri asked, although the last part was added hastily.

"My back hurts sometimes." He said quietly, mind reeling. Oh god, did she read the labels? Knowing her, she did. Matsuri's curiosity tended to get the better of her most times. Slamming the pills down, he turned onto his back and flipped his sheets over himself. All he wanted to do was sleep, but Matsuri seemed to have other ideas. He felt a finger stab his shoulder lightly.

"Why does it hurt?"

"That's not something I really want to talk about right now, Matsuri. Turn off the lights and go back to sleep." He was too tired to focus on this. If she'd just let him sleep for a few more hours –

"I do. It's been going on for a while, hasn't it? I may leave most things in your life be, but this is something I won't let go. You've brought those meds to my house before, and I want to know why." Gaara remained silent, hoping she'd get the hint. But…this was Matsuri. She wouldn't and couldn't let this matter slide by any longer. "Look, I get it it's not something you want to talk about, but I won't be able to get to sleep until you tell me something. God, Gaara it could be anything. Just…something." She sighed tiredly, flopping onto the bed. "I know sleep meds need to be taken right before you go to bed, so I'll be quiet for now. I'm not leaving without an answer though." With that, she flipped the covers over herself and remained silent.

 **XXXXXX**

When he woke up, the sun was in his eyes and the faint smell of batter was drifting through his apartment. Getting out of bed, he noticed his back no longer felt like he was being stabbed. A slight twinge was all that was left. He didn't see his phone anywhere though…must've left it in the living room. He walked into the kitchen to see Matsuri making…something. He saw pancake batter and a whisk, but had no idea what she was doing with it.

"Good morning!" Her voice came from beside him as he jumped. "I wanted crepes. They'll be ready soon! If I manage to get it right…" The last part was obviously not meant for him to hear, so Gaara sat at the small dining table, watching as she tried to make breakfast. He wasn't aware of when this started, but the two of them began to crash at the others house when one didn't want to go home. Matsuri took it upon herself to make breakfast whenever this happened, despite the fact that it was polite for the host to serve the guest. Regardless, it happened every single time she was over.

Breakfast was on the table within ten minutes, and Gaara was rather impressed with how the crepes came out. Temari took him out for crepes back when he was still in high school, and he still bought some from time to time when he had some extra cash. The crepes were a little too thick, but cream cheese she used for the filling was a little too heavy anyway. It would've helped if he had a larger skillet better suited for crepes, but the only pot and pan set he could afford only included the basics. He had to make do with what he had. Although Matsuri didn't seem to mind - not that she'd mention it in his apartment. That wasn't like her; she was polite to an extreme. It irritated him from time to time, but it was something her guardians instilled in her while growing up so he couldn't do anything about it now.

"Gaara? You okay?" Her voice brought him back to the table, Matsuri looking at him in concern. At his nod, she put her fork down, her face determined. "You have chronic back pain. Why?" He sighed, this again? Well, she _did_ say she wasn't leaving without an answer earlier this morning.

"When I was a junior in high school, I got hit by a car. At first, I couldn't feel anything from the waist down. But after a year of physical therapy and hospital visits I could walk without a problem. But they couldn't really reverse the damage done to my spine, so if I don't support it properly while I'm sleeping it hurts like the devil." Admitting what happened was never a good feeling, especially to the friends he made after the incident. He didn't need nor want them to feel bad for something that happened in the past. His friend smiled at him sympathetically and changed the subject. Before he knew it, his plate was gone and Matsuri was standing in front of him with her purse on her shoulder.

"I'm going to head out and get changed before work. Unlike you, I have the afternoon shift." The last sentence was accompanied with a smile that had his heart skip a beat.

"That's too bad. Shall I return the favor of your breakfast with dinner tonight?" The words left his mouth before he knew it, and he felt his cheeks burn. He just asked her out. Gaara, the artist who found his calling as a pastry chef, just asked Matsuri for a dinner date. He wasn't supposed to do that. She stared at him, eyes wide as a light pink blush covered her cheeks. One of her hands covered her mouth to hide the smile and muffle the giggles threatening to leave her mouth.

"Has anyone told you how smooth you are, Gaara?" She managed, the blush still on her face. "I'd be honored to have dinner with you. My shift ends at 7." She smiled sweetly, her eyes twinkling.

"I'll pick you up at 8 then." He replied, watching her as she left his home. For the next 20 minutes he sat at the empty table, shocked that he even managed to ask her out in the first place. Granted, it had been accidental but he didn't want to listen to that part of his brain yet. It would be the first date with just the two of them, so in other words – this was their first legitimate date.

A small genuine smile came to his lips, and for once he felt the excitement that was successfully landing a date with a girl.

 **XXXXXX**

 **Just so you guys know, Percale and Sateen are two different weave types when it comes to cotton sheets. Percale is usually lighter and meant for people who get hot during the night, while Sateen has a higher thread count, as well as being heavier and cozier.**

 **I'm back…for now. This chapter started out strong, but I think it ended rather weak. I'm trying to develop some form of romance, but I haven't much experience with it in real life, so it may fall flat near the end. Stuff went down during school this year, so my fanfiction drive – my whole creativity drive, really – kinda took a downward spiral. I've graduated high school, so that stressful part of my life is over. I've been having some minor mental problems as well, but since those are slowly getting under control I decided to try writing again.**

 **I understand that you people are most likely sick and tired of hearing people's excuses, but I felt that some of that needed to be said.**

 **I plan to be more active on this story, actually** **Secrets of Room 315** **needs to be updated dearly, but unfortunately that story might have to be rewritten. I lost the inspiration I had for it. I'm actually shocked that I still got it for this story. But this story holds a dear place in my heart, so I plan to continue adding to it.**

 **Hope the next update comes way sooner than this one did.**

 **Fuguruma**


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